Following Donald Trump's effective threat that "the gates of hell" would open on those who don't release the hostages before his return to the White House, things are finally moving. Surprisingly, the next catalyst for advancing a deal may be silence – media silence.
It's no coincidence that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asked military censors to tighten oversight and limit information leaks from negotiations. He's learned from experience. Dozens of media reports over the past 14 months have undermined rather than helped negotiations and the hostages. Both sides have often played to their base instead of focusing on reaching a deal. If the media goes quiet now, a different, more important engine can work better – the engine of negotiations.
When it was previously reported that Hamas had backed away from demanding a permanent ceasefire, their negotiators rushed to deny it and return to their original position. When leaks suggested Israel had agreed to redeploy differently along the Philadelphi Corridor, denials came from the Israeli side. And when media learned of disagreements within the Israeli team, or that Netanyahu had given the negotiating team "broad mandate" and "more rope," Hamas understood it could extract more concessions and hardened its positions.
Reports about flexibility and shifts in the Israeli team's position, especially about internal disagreements, caused particular damage to negotiations. Even more harmful to the hostages were detailed reports about internal Israeli team discussions, leaked by various opposing sides trying to advance their positions through the media.
The families' conduct, though they cannot be blamed, also didn't advance a deal – and sometimes set negotiations back, though this was certainly not their intention. Hamas, seeing the heavy pressure families (and media) put on the government, believed it could push further and take harder positions.
What's done is done, but now please – silence from everyone. This may be closer than ever, but media reports could still derail everything.
Both opponents and supporters of the emerging hostage deal format, who despite their differences sincerely want the hostages returned home to their families, need to, excuse the expression, keep quiet now. When the hostages return, we'll all be moved and pained and cry over their suffering and return, and many will struggle with the high price paid.
With or without media coverage, the deal will include components that face fierce public controversy, like releasing numerous "heavyweight" terrorists, (temporary?) concession of some important strategic wartime achievements, and partial release of hostages. Not everyone will return home.
We've already argued about all this here and poured out our souls. Everything has been discussed. Everything will be debated again after details are published, before the cabinet and government votes. But now, to finally have something real on the table to "fight" about, we need media silence – whether voluntary or enforced by military censors, who should now be stricter and less liberal for the hostages' sake.
